Life In The Slow Lane

Author and photographer Rebecca Gibson has no interest in flying visits to Scots tourist hotspots - she wants visitors to really get to know places

- NICK DRAINEY

REBECCA GIBSON'S approach to tourism is not a typical bus tour day out, where you tick off as many "must-see" destinations as possible - probably ending the day weary, but with a camera full of hastily-snapped pictures.

She says, "It's not about rushing around and seeing everything in one go - it's about going to a single place and immersing yourself in it. Only then can you truly experience somewhere." The outlook of the outdoor writer and photographer, who lives in Burghead, Moray, is to take it easy and really get to know a place, maybe off the beaten track or at least at a time when visitor numbers are very low - or, even better, at zero.

The concept is known as Slow Travel and is definitely a growing trend - one she applied when writing a guidebook covering "special places" to visit in north-east Scotland.

Rebecca started her travels for the book in September 2021, with a remit of uncovering "hidden gems" in Aberdeenshire, Moray and the Cairngorms National Park.

But where to start? She says, "The whole point of Slow Travel is that it's not always the top sites."

As with all of her work, she had a desire to make her book accessible for everyone, saying, "My background is in wildlife and that stereotypically appeals mostly to men and older people - I do like bucking the trend in that way.

"I believe that if I can inspire a young girl to get muddy and sit in the freezing cold photographing hares at 4am, I've done my job right."

There was also a need for food. "Local food is a great way to get to know an area and I firmly advocate the idea of shopping small - avoiding supermarket chains and finding produce made in the area, often using traditional techniques and family recipes," Rebecca says.